Local authorities have identified a juvenile student because the sender of texts that threatened Highland Park High School on Wednesday evening, in line with a press release from the City of Highland Park.

In response to the City, the juvenile told police the messages “weren’t meant to be taken seriously,” and police reportedly determined the coed didn’t have the means to perform an attack as described within the texts.

Police referred the coed to the county’s juvenile division for potential charges, and the town didn’t share further details on the coed or the investigation.

In response to a Sept. 28 message from Township School District 113, a person sent text messages to a minimum of two HPHS students on Sept. 27 that threatened a shooting at HPHS. A teacher heard students discussing the messages and informed school administration. The college alerted the police department around noon.

Police reportedly increased their presence at the highschool and all Highland Park schools for the remainder of the day, and the college redeployed its weapons-detection system at the college entrances.

The incident occurred about six months after a Highland Park High School student was arrested for bringing a gun to high school on April 4, causing a two-hour lockdown. The April incident also sparked a movement to extend security measures at the highschool, and prior to the college yr, the district voted so as to add metal detectors and more safety enhancements districtwide.

The incident also got here while one other Highland Park school, Red Oak Elementary, is investigating a series of threats, including bomb threats, that caused two school evacuations.

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